


Heaven Help a Fool Who Falls in Love

by matty_macgregor



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: James comforts him, Keith is sad over Shiro getting married, M/M, Pining, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-19 14:22:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17003322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/matty_macgregor/pseuds/matty_macgregor
Summary: Keith didn’t get the hint. His smile widened slightly, a shadow of the smile he used to give Shirogane so freely. James hoarded it nonetheless—for the briefest moment, he’d made Keith smile.It was enough.It had to be enough.--Or James tries to comfort Keith the day before Shiro's wedding.





	Heaven Help a Fool Who Falls in Love

**Author's Note:**

> Please keep in mind while reading that English is not my first language and that nobody proofread this. I wrote this after reading a post on Tumblr.
> 
> Enjoy.

James hadn’t expected this sight to greet him when he reached the roof of the Garrison headquarters. 

This had become one of his favourite spots over the years, one of the few places he could run off to when life turned overwhelming. The past twelve months had been more than overwhelming—if he’d thought fighting a war against aliens to be tough, it was nothing compared to making sure peace lasted. He didn’t know why this had come as a surprise. The humans were one species and yet they’d loved fighting amongst themselves. Why was it surprising that hundreds of totally different species couldn’t get along when a common threat no longer bound them together? So the Galaxy Garrison and the Voltron Coalition had been doing damage control for the past months, trying to sooth tempers and smooth ruffled feathers. It was a pondering process that had no end in sight. James spent more of his time playing the diplomat than being a pilot. It was tiresome, tiring, unrewarding work.

Since the Garrison had become one of the centres of the Coalition, he’d gotten used to seeing many alien aircrafts parked everywhere. Different colours, different shapes, all of them mingling flawlessly amongst the Garrison vehicles. James no longer saw them—they were just part of the décor now, a blend of colours against the reddish sand of the desert. They were all the same to his eyes. Except for one. He knew this one, not large, just enough for two people and some supplies, a grey-purplish colour that used to be associated with the Galra. 

It was Keith’s craft. He was back. And why wouldn’t he? Every Paladin had been called back for this. For Captain Shirogane’s wedding.

James knew Keith was back yet he couldn’t stop himself from being surprised to see him. He’d expected them to cross paths inside the Garrison, maybe nod at each other in the corridor. He hadn’t expected to find Keith in his spot on the roof, legs dangling off the edge, eyes in the distance. From here, they could perfectly see the spot Shirogane had chosen for his wedding. A bright pavilion had been erected to protect the guests from the unforgiving sun of the desert. There were chairs and tables made ready to welcome everybody. The emplacement looked cheerful, with ribbons of colours and an air of expectation hanging over it. James had been so busy with his day to day work that he hadn’t given the place much attention before. To him, it was as if it had all sprung out of the ground in one night while he wasn’t looking. 

Much like the romance between Shirogane and Curtis, James thought. Nobody had seen it coming. One day, they were coworkers. The next, they were engaged. It had happened so fast James had been left wondering if he’d somehow missed it all. He’d been on the Atlas with the two of them and yet he hadn’t seen it coming. Nobody had, if the whispers could be believed, and Rizavi was very good at hearing whispers. While most people hadn’t cared much, too busy fighting aliens, James had been heart-broken at the news of the romance between these two. Not for himself, but for Keith. 

Keith and Shirogane had seemed so much closer upon their return on Earth a couple of years ago that James had been sure they were together. He’d been devastated, watching from afar as these two shared looks and touches in a way only lovers should. Then, things had shifted—not long before the launch of the Atlas, the warmth James had observed had chilled. For some reason, gone were the touches and looks and smiles. The fondness had departed from their words to be replaced by chilly politeness. They’d sat next to each other stiffly, almost ill-at-ease. James had never known what had happened. He’d thought they’d broken up until he learned that Shirogane and Curtis had been together all that time. Either Keith hadn’t known about it, or he’d been fine with it until he was no longer. Whatever had happened had driven Keith away. He’d exchanged his Garrison uniform for a Blade of Marmora one, and had departed with that Galra woman that was his mother, not pausing to say goodbye.

And now he was back for Shirogane’s wedding. He was loyal, James had to give him that. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to show up at his crush’s wedding. 

“Keith,” he said, unsure how to greet the other.

Keith turned to look at him, eyebrows raised in surprise. “Hi, Griffin. Did you need something?”

James’ heart leapt into his throat so fast it choked off his words. He’d tried to get rid of his feelings, tried to make himself understand that Keith was so out of his league to be laughable. It hadn’t worked. He hadn’t been able to forget Keith after he’d been kicked out of the Garrison—how was he supposed to forget him after they’d fought aliens side by side? Keith was so beautiful sitting there with the sun setting behind him that James had trouble breathing. The orange light gave a reddish glow to his black hair and his skin seemed to glow. His face was open and trusting, his purple eyes huge as he looked at James, expecting an answer to his question. 

James swallowed. “Uh, no. I was simply stretching my legs.”

“Yeah.”

Keith apparently considered this the end of the conversation. He turned back towards the pavilion where the marriage would be held. His body language spoke louder than any word: the slump of his shoulders, the bow of his back, the downturn of his lips. He was unhappy. He’d loved Shirogane for so long, after all.

Before he thought better of it, James sat beside him. Keith looked surprised by this, but thankfully didn’t tell him to go away. James considered this a small victory. He felt stupidly awkward. He didn’t know what to say or even if Keith wanted to talk to him at all. They’d never been friends and they’d never talked about what had happened between them when they were teenagers. James had never apologized for all the shit he’d put Keith through. He wondered if now would be the time before thinking that, no, Keith wouldn’t care about that for the moment. 

“You really loved him, didn’t you?” James found himself saying.

This time, Keith turned to him, eyes wide and panicky. “W-What?”

“Shirogane, you loved him. We all knew it.”

Keith’s cheeks coloured and he rapidly turned his head away. His hair fell into his face, hiding his expression. “Yeah,” he muttered in a low voice. His hands on his lap clenched into fists. “I’m happy for him.”

James snorted. “Bullshit. You’re miserable. I’m not going to tell you not to be.”

A long silence stretched between them. Dry wind blew from the desert, bringing with it the smell of sand. The sun had disappeared below the horizon, painting the black sky with the orange and red of its dying rays. It was bitterly beautiful, James reflected. He’d imagined that scene a million time. He’d imagined himself sitting here with Keith, watching the desert, shoulders pressed together for warmth. He’d imagined leaning in to kiss Keith. He’d imagined the feel of those soft, plump lips against his own, the feel of arms wrapping around his neck, of their breaths mingling. He’d imagined confessing to Keith here, of how their life together would begin on that rooftop. 

But Keith had loved Shirogane. Even as a teenager James had seen it. He’d known he’d never be able to compare so he’d kept quiet. He’d buried his anger and desperation behind mean words and mean actions, anything to get Keith’s attention away from Shirogane. He’d been stupid and young enough to believe that this was the way to go, that Keith would fall for his tormentor. He felt like such an ass when he thought back on those days. 

“It was different when he was with Adam,” Keith said softly, “I’d had time to grow used to seeing them together. With Curtis, it came out of nowhere. I just… I thought we’d gotten close when we were in space. I’d begun to hope that things might work out between us.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be ranting.”

“No, it’s fine!” James assured perhaps a tad too rapidly. “I understand perfectly.”

Keith quirked an eyebrow at him, lips tugged up at one corner. “Really? You understand unrequited love?”

James’ face felt hot. He didn’t look away. “More than you would believe.”

Keith didn’t get the hint. His smile widened slightly, a shadow of the smile he used to give Shirogane so freely. James hoarded it nonetheless—for the briefest moment, he’d made Keith smile.

It was enough.

It had to be enough.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [Tumblr](http://ninjamatty.tumblr.com/) if you want to talk :)


End file.
